Transcript The Four Steps of Effective Energy Management

THE FOUR STEPS
of Effective Energy Management
Donald R. Wulfinghoff, P.E.
Wulfinghoff Energy Services, Inc.
Wheaton, Maryland USA
301 – 946 – 1196
[email protected]
www.EnergyBooks.com
How effectively are we
managing our energy costs
today?
It’s time for a candid
review. …
Are we selecting our activities
rationally, or by whim? …
Are our economic criteria
realistic, or wishful thinking?
…
Are we paying enough
attention to risk? …
Are we keeping our activities
profitable? …
Let’s see …
“ENERGY MANAGEMENT”
MEANS LOWERING COST BY:
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
ELIMINATING UNNECESSARY ENERGY USE

IMPROVING THE EFFICIENCY OF NEEDED
ENERGY USE

BUYING ENERGY AT LOWER NET PRICES

ADJUSTING OPERATIONS TO ALLOW
PURCHASING ENERGY AT LOWER PRICES
THE FOUR STEPS
(1) Identify ALL your opportunities.
(2) Prioritize your actions rationally.
(3) Accomplish your activities
successfully.
(4) Maintain your activities.
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Note that, …
the steps of effective energy
management are the SAME
as for the management of all
productive functions.
STEP 1
Identify ALL Your Opportunities
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
Before you take ANY action, find
ALL your opportunities.

The big difference of energy
management is that the number
of options to consider is much
larger than for other important
functions.
STEP 1
Identify ALL Your Opportunities
10

The biggest hazard to energy
management is the itch to do things
before knowing all the options.

Finding your best cost saving
opportunities is like an Easter egg
hunt. You don’t know which eggs have
the biggest prizes until you find them
all.
Manager: “Mr. Wulfinghoff, please
give us a ‘short list’ of ways to
make our facility efficient.”
Wulfinghoff: “If I could do that,
I wouldn’t have spent 20 years
writing a book about energy
efficiency that weighs 8 pounds.”
It is your responsibility as
an energy manager to avoid
spending your organization’s
money until you are certain
where it can be spent most
effectively.
A Competent Energy Manager:
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
Does not wait passively for proposals.

Aggressively finds every opportunity
within the facility for lowering energy
cost.

Relentlessly educates himself about
every method of lowering energy cost
that could apply to his facility.
STEP 1
Identify ALL Your Opportunities
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
Unlike most other business activities,
you need a formal process, usually
called an “energy audit”, to find all
your opportunities.

A good “energy audit” takes time and
costs money, but not much of either,
compared to your overall program.
STEP 1
Identify ALL Your Opportunities
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
Even today, competent energy
audits are rare.

This is the greatest deficiency of
present energy management,
resulting in continued high energy
costs, waste of money on
ineffective action, and inadequate
respect for energy managers.
The energy audit is the
foundation on which your
entire energy management
program rests.
A deficient energy audit
WILL cause a deficient
energy management program.
STEP 1
Identify ALL Your Opportunities
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
The energy auditor requires
scientific and engineering
education, broad practical
experience, and solid judgement.

The energy auditor needs a
thorough understanding of ALL
opportunities, not just a few.
Vendors can’t do energy audits!
The energy auditor should have
NO CONFLICTING INTERESTS.
Umm, …
Who did YOUR energy audit?
STEP 2
Prioritize Your Activities Rationally
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
The sequence of your activities is a
major factor in the economic benefit
of your energy management
program.

Consider all the criteria that matter,
not just the economic criteria.

Calculate with realistic numbers.
STEP 2
Prioritize Your Activities Rationally
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
Limit consideration to measures
of proven reliability.

Consider the ability of your staff
to accomplish and maintain each
measure.
The best cost saving measures
usually are boring, i.e.: ordinary
and inexpensive. The staff
understand them easily.
The worst measures usually are
ego gratifying, i.e.: “innovative”,
complex, and expensive. The fact
that you don’t really understand
them is part of the thrill.
STEP 2
Prioritize Your Activities Rationally
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
Cost, by itself, is almost never a
significant selection factor.

Because, IF the measure works as
expected, it provides a higher rate of
return than most other investments.

So, you can borrow the money, if
necessary.
The largest cost of energy
conservation is FAILURE.
If an activity does not work, it
will not pay back.
Therefore, …
the most important fiduciary
responsibility of the energy
manager is to
ELIMINATE FAILURE.
STEP 3
Accomplish Your Activities Properly
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
Each cost saving activity is an
independent project that requires
its own knowledge, equipment,
and people.

The key to success is doing your
homework before initiating each
activity.
STEP 4
Maintain Your Activities Endlessly
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
Almost nothing continues to operate
successfully by itself.

Each energy management activity
requires continuing support.

Integrate the maintenance of each
activity seamlessly into your overall
operations.
So, …
How does YOUR energy
management program
compare to the best program
that is possible?
Keep tuning your program.
There is always room for
improvement.
Energy management
NEVER ENDS.
And finally, …
Your program will be a success
when the top managers of your
organization understand that
energy management produces
the highest profits in the
organization.